Den and Croagunk
by zakattak1104
Summary: The beginning of Dennis Seyer's epic adventure in the Divum Region. Den gets his first pokemon, and battles with his older brother Martin. Although this is a seemingly normal start to a 13 year old's pokemon journey, be prepared for a dose of realism in this fresh new story about a boy and his companion.


Den sat at the edge of his bed. His shoelaces couldn't be any more interesting than right now. The worry filled every fiber of his being. He had never been this… _anxious_ before. It wasn't like him. He was the perfect example of confidence, tenacity, and never-ending courage. But today was _the day._ He finally got his first Pokémon. It sounded like Professor Alder had only a few left, and with a last name of Seyer, Den was likely to have only a couple choices. Of course he had turned 13 the year they began giving them out in alphabetical order. Just his luck. He looked up as his mother came into his room with a large grin stretching from ear to ear.

"Professor Alder is –" His mother started. But Den was already out the door and down the staircase.

The professor was sitting on his couch, holding a worn leather satchel in his lap. He had another bag tucked closely to his side. Den assumed that was where the Pokémon were stored. Den stared at Alder, unsure of what to say.

"Come! Sit. We shall discuss what we need to do." Alder said, gesturing to his left. He radiated a strange confidence from him, yet seemed apprehensive about Den's stoicism. Although Den was excited out of his mind, he felt uncomfortable around Alder.

"Professor . . . do you have any left?" Den said faintly. The professor chuckled.

"Yes! Of course. I made sure each child turning thirteen this year had at least three to choose from. Since you are the last, you actually are luckier than the rest. You get four. Not all of them were taken.

"May –"Den cleared his throat, "may I see them?"

"Of course!" Alder reached into his satchel and pulled out four small spheres. They were merely an inch around.

"How do they fit in there?" Den asked.

"Do you know much about quantum physics?"

"Uhm. . . no."

"Good. Neither do I. I was afraid you might ask that. You seem to be very bright. Well, this is how you release them." Alder held out one to Den.

"Woah. . ." Den said in awe. The cold metal sphere was so tiny. He was amazed that such powerful creatures could even fit inside them. He pulled the rest of his fingers around it. A small dot of warmth seemed to emanate from the center. A heartbeat, almost.

"First, press the center button." Den copied Alder's gesture. The pokèball grew to almost four times its size. It came to rest perfectly in Den's hand, which was much smaller than Alder's.

"Do these grow to the size of your hand? Because . . . your hands are a lot bigger than mine and it fits in yours too."

"Hm. I haven't really thought of that. That's a good catch though." Den almost rolled his eyes. The idiocy of this supposed Pokèmon _professor_ was appalling. He's researching Pokèmon and never thought that pokèballs fit the size of the user's hand? Oh well. Not much Den could do about that. He continued to listen to Alder.

"Now just hold the pokèball away from you, with the button facing out. It will open automatically." Alder demonstrated for Den. He held his arm out and turned the pokèball away from him. The red and white halves separated with a hiss. Den wanted steam to come out, with lights and loud booming. Why couldn't people do anything like he wanted? Why couldn't people do anything _right_? A red bolt of energy shot out and wildly moved around, before finally connecting with the ground. A cute green dinosaur with tusks materialized. Even though Den thought Alder was an idiot, he had some pretty awesome pets.

"This little lady is called Axew. She'd be a good pick."

"I'd still like to look at the others if you don't mind."

"Go right ahead," Alder said with a smile. Den imitated the professor's position and released the next Pokèmon from the ball he held in his hand. He still wished that smoke or fog or something would come out. It would seem a little more ominous and . . . cool. The bolt that came out was a little more purple this time. A small dark-colored frog stood on its hind legs in front of Den. Den crouched down and looked at it. It stood barely over two feet tall, yet it just _emanated _power. His mouth agape, he reached out to touch it. The frog stared back with a mix of respect and defiance. The frog lowered its head with a low rumbling croak, and nuzzled Den's hand. He had expected the frog to feel slimy, but it had a strangely paper-like skin. It was dry and seemed to be ultra-thin.

"That guy is Croagunk. He's an . . . interesting one." Alder said. He looked at the two like they were his own two boys. Den had an air of a scientist, which Alder had wanted in his own son.

"There are two others." Alder said abruptly, disturbing Den's absorption in the tiny frog. He took two other pokèballs out and released the Pokèmon inside. One was a cute pink egg-shaped Pokèmon. It was also carrying an egg inside its pouch, which helped its egg-shaped appearance. The other was a mantis-like green bug Pokèmon. It hovered an inch above the floor. It had a menacing presence. Standing around five feet tall, the mantis was just over Den's size. He liked that one too.

"Say hello to Happiny and Scyther. They're the last two you can choose from."

"Scyther looks really awesome." Alder grinned at Den's comment.

"I thought you would like him. He's a lot younger than the rest. He has lots to learn."

"How old are the rest?" Den asked.

"Hm. I believe that Happiny is about two years old, turning three next month. Axew is around three also, and Croagunk is five. Scyther's going to be turning two in three months."

"Woah. He is a lot younger. How is he so big?"

"The species is a lot larger than others. Happiny, after growing into a Blissey, only reaches about Scyther's height right now. Scyther, after maturing into a full-grown Scizor, can be anywhere from six to seven feet. He's quite nimble for being so tall though."

"Hm. I think this is going to be a difficult choice."

"It always is." Alder chuckled.

"You can take Axew and Happiny back. I think I'm going to pick between these two." He pointed at Croagunk and Scyther.

"Okay then." Alder encapsulated Happiny and Axew and put them inside his satchel. Den walked up to Scyther. The bug floated down to the ground. Den was around four foot eleven, an average height for his age. Scyther looked down at him, seemingly emotionless. Scyther was just barely an inch taller. Den gestured for one of Scyther's arms, which were made up of one long strip of material. It seemed to be sharp. The Scyther willingly held his arm up for Den to inspect. Den ran his fingers gingerly across the edge of Scyther's sharp arm.

"What is this stuff made out of?"

"Well, Scyther has an exoskeleton."

"I can tell. But it doesn't feel like it's a bone." Den sighed at this man's lack of understanding. Den was a lot smarter than most 13 year olds and Alder should know that.

"It's not exactly like any other carbon-based life form. It's a mixture of what we could relate to as muscle tissue and bone. He can flex it to make it more dense."

"Interesting." Den continued to look over the Scyther's body. He was impressed with its behavior.

"Does it have a nickname?"

"That's up to you, Den."

"I'm not sure I'm picking this one just yet." Den turned back to the Croagunk. It reminded him of his brother, in some alien way. The same confidence as his older brother, yet it seemed like the frog was holding back an ever-present smirk. It just stared at Den blankly. It let out another low croak. Den smiled. He turned to his mother, who stood in the kitchen near the living room. His mother was smiling even more than he was. He giggled a little bit. He placed his hand on Croagunk's head and looked at Alder.

"I think this guy and I are going to be really good friends."

* * *

"What am I going to call you?" Den asked absentmindedly. He was twiddling his thumbs and staring into his new companion's sunken eyes. Croagunk replied with a croak. Den laid back and flopped on his bed. He felt the mattress lift up for a second, before the frog hopped onto Den's chest. He rolled over and clutched his ribcage.

"That is not okay! What were you thinking? You weigh, like, fifty pounds!" He turned and picked up Croagunk.

"Yeah, definitely fifty or sixty pounds," Den groaned and set him back down. A smirk traced itself across Croagunk's face. Den laughed under his breath. They both heard a door open and close downstairs and turned toward the hallway. Den turned to Croagunk and motioned for him to stay put. Den peered over the top of the stairs, and then turned back toward his frog with a big smile on his face.

"My brother's finally home!"

Croagunk hopped off the bed and padded over to Den. They walked downstairs together to meet his brother. Croagunk had new Pokèmon to meet.

"How big is he now?" Den's mother asked. Den's brother had been gone to become a professional Pokèmon trainer, and he came back with an amazing team of Pokèmon. Den's favorite was his giant Arcanine. The canine towered over Den and his mother in the kitchen, while his brother was only a couple of inches shorter.

"Hey, Marty, guess what?" Den said slyly.

"Dennis! You've grown since I've seen you." Martin ruffled Den's hair.

"Come here Croagunk!" The frog hopped down the rest of the stairs and sat down on the last one. He let out a loud croak. Den chuckled, and Martin walked closer to get a good look at the creature.

"I haven't seen one of these before. He's really cool looking." Martin smiled and patted Croagunk on the head. It barely changed expression.

"You think we can battle? He hasn't battled anyone yet but I think he's powerful enough to beat one of yours."

"Are you challenging me?" Martin acted startled.

"Oh yeah, for sure. But you have to go easy on me!"

"Hm. I'll see if I can find a Pokèmon that would put up a good fight against little Croagunk here." Martin pulled out a case of Pokèballs before turning to his massive Arcanine.

"Arcanine, come back!" Arcanine glared at Martin.

"I mean it, Arcanine." Arcanine lowered its head and walked toward Martin's outstretched hand. The Pokèmon seemed to compress and then teleport inside the pokèball.

"Why did he seem so reluctant to go back?" Den asked. Martin laughed airily.

"He spends a lot of time outside. Pokèballs aren't exactly as cool as the outside world."

"Oh okay. Who are you going to use to battle me?"

"I just caught a new Pokèmon, called a Seedot. It grew into what they call the 'second evolution.' Its name is Nuzleaf." A small creature with a leaf on its head appeared in front of Den. It was taller than Croagunk, but not by much. It whistled a short tune and danced around.

"Alright boys, if you're going to battle each other, you better do it outside. I don't want my house to be a mess." Den smiled and nodded in approval. Martin's face flashed with annoyance but then turned into an overenthusiastic chuckle.

"Okay mother. We're going to be outside then." Martin ushered Nuzleaf through the door. Croagunk hopped into Den's arms. Den struggled to lift him, but walked outside and set him down.

Martin pulled out a can of paint and began drawing a circle in the dirt. He completed the shape, and then drew a line through the middle. Den understood the point of this. They were boundaries, so the Pokèmon wouldn't run away or jump outside. Croagunk walked onto one side and looked back at Den. Den smiled and pumped his fist. Croagunk cracked a smile briefly, then stared back at his opponent. Den was nervous; he didn't actually know how Croagunk fought. He assumed he was fast, since he was so small. Nuzleaf seemed slower, but could take a hit harder than Croagunk could.

"There's a PokèCenter nearby when we're over. It's just across the street," Den taunted.

"Oh sure. Do you need a minute to strategize with him or do you think he'll beat my Nuzleaf on his own?"

"Hm. I'll see if he understands what I'm saying." Den gestured for his companion. Croagunk walked back toward Den before he was knocked over by a flurry of strikes. He slid a few feet before getting up.

"Hey! What was that?" Den said angrily.

"You do whatever you can to win little bro. You'll learn that soon enough." Martin said with a smirk.

"Croagunk, get behind him! I don't think he's as fast as you are!" Croagunk leapt into the air. He touched down on the ground just in front of Nuzleaf and rolled. Nuzleaf lashed out, but Croagunk was already gone. The frog tackled the Nuzleaf from behind and leapt to its feet. As Nuzleaf stood up shakily, Croagunk ran toward it. Croagunk readied a fist, and slammed into his opponent. He stood on its chest as it slid to a stop. It was unconscious.

"That was one awesome battle Croagunk," Den commented. Croagunk glared at his fallen opponent and inflated his cheeks. A powerful growl emanated from its throat as the Nuzleaf retreated back into Martin's care.

"I hadn't really trained Nuzleaf, and he's not the most obedient. He's not really all that strong either. That was unfair." Martin whined. He was almost 19, but Den thought he could be more childish than some of Den's friends. He rolled his eyes and pulled Croagunk back into his arms.

* * *

"You think that will work for bedding?" Den patted a small wad of sheets down for Croagunk to lie down on while he slept.

"You don't really even need him to sleep, just put him back in his Pokèball." Martin advised.

"You said yourself it wasn't as comfortable for the Pokèmon. I think he'll be fine."

"Alright. It's up to you. Just don't come crying to me when he destroys your room." Den shooed Martin out of his room before turning off the lights and sliding underneath his covers. After such a long day, he was exhausted yet excited to start his journey tomorrow. He fell asleep within minutes.


End file.
